The Wheat and the Tares
Read the parable
- Matthew 13:24-30 Primary account
- Matthew 13:36-43 Jesus’ explanation
Context
The "tares" are generally identified as darnel, a poisonous weed that closely resembles wheat until the heads of grain appear, making early removal both difficult and risky — uprooting darnel would tear out wheat whose roots were intertwined with it. Sowing weeds in an enemy's field was a recognized act of agricultural sabotage in the ancient world. Jesus told the parable publicly and explained it privately in the house to his disciples.
Meaning
Jesus explains it point by point: the sower of good seed is the Son of man, the field is the world, the good seed are the children of the kingdom, the tares are the children of the wicked one sown by the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age. Until then, the two grow together — the kingdom does not advance by prematurely rooting out evildoers, a judgment that belongs to God alone and would harm the wheat. At the harvest the angels will separate them, the wicked to judgment and the righteous to shine forth in their Father's kingdom. The parable teaches patience with a mixed world and confidence in God's final, accurate judgment.
Go deeper
Two free lessons walk through the parables as a whole: The Parables of Jesus and Interpreting the Parables.